Paper Log House
Bhuj, India · 2001
Photo · Photo by Kartikeya Shodhan
A precedent for low-cost, disaster-relief housing utilizing paper tubes for structural walls and bamboo for vaulted roof trusses, demonstrating sustainable and rapid-assembly design.
- What we like about this project
- The gable ends are filled with a delicate diagonal bamboo lattice that allows ventilation while maintaining structural rigidity.
Materials
- paper-tubes
- bamboo
- thatch
- mud-plinth
- stone-rubble
Visual identifiers
- paper-log-walls
- bamboo-vault
- lattice-gable
- modular-shelter
- temporary-housing
Style tags
- humanitarian
- vernacular-modern
- sustainable
- modular
Visual tags
- humanitarian-architecture
- disaster-relief
- low-cost-housing
- vernacular-materials
- modular-construction
- Geometry
- A row of three identical modular shelters, each featuring a rectangular plan, vertical ribbed walls, and a semi-cylindrical vaulted roof with a diagonal lattice gable end.
- Facade system
- Load-bearing paper tube walls with vertical ribbing, left unclad to expose the structural material.
- Structural guess
- Load-bearing paper tube walls supporting a lightweight bamboo vault truss.
- Spatial scale
- Single-story, human-scaled emergency shelters designed for quick assembly and domestic occupancy.
- Lighting
- Bright, diffused daylight under an overcast sky, casting soft shadows beneath the deep roof overhangs.
- Atmosphere
- A hopeful, community-centered atmosphere where simple, tactile materials provide dignified shelter.
- Environmental context
- Arid, rural landscape with loose soil, low scrub vegetation, and a rough stone retaining wall.
- Spatial experience
- The shelters sit on a slightly elevated common plinth, creating a shared porch-like threshold that transitions directly into the dry, open landscape.
- Composition rhythm
- A repeating sequence of three identical vaulted modules aligned linearly along a shared stone plinth.
- Style reading
- Eco-minimalist humanitarian architecture
- Program
- Temporary post-disaster housing
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture
- Materials
- paper-tubes, bamboo, thatch, mud-plinth, stone-rubble
- Visual identifiers
- paper-log-walls, bamboo-vault, lattice-gable, modular-shelter, temporary-housing
- Style tags
- humanitarian, vernacular-modern, sustainable, modular
- Visual tags
- humanitarian-architecture, disaster-relief, low-cost-housing, vernacular-materials, modular-construction
- Geometry
- A row of three identical modular shelters, each featuring a rectangular plan, vertical ribbed walls, and a semi-cylindrical vaulted roof with a diagonal lattice gable end.
- Facade system
- Load-bearing paper tube walls with vertical ribbing, left unclad to expose the structural material.
- Structural guess
- Load-bearing paper tube walls supporting a lightweight bamboo vault truss.
- Spatial scale
- Single-story, human-scaled emergency shelters designed for quick assembly and domestic occupancy.
- Lighting
- Bright, diffused daylight under an overcast sky, casting soft shadows beneath the deep roof overhangs.
- Atmosphere
- A hopeful, community-centered atmosphere where simple, tactile materials provide dignified shelter.
- Environmental context
- Arid, rural landscape with loose soil, low scrub vegetation, and a rough stone retaining wall.
- Spatial experience
- The shelters sit on a slightly elevated common plinth, creating a shared porch-like threshold that transitions directly into the dry, open landscape.
- Composition rhythm
- A repeating sequence of three identical vaulted modules aligned linearly along a shared stone plinth.
- Style reading
- Eco-minimalist humanitarian architecture
- Program
- Temporary post-disaster housing
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture